EU panel rejects bid to stop Monsanto weedkiller

A key committee in the European Parliament rejected a proposal Tuesday to halt an extension in the use of the world’s most popular weedkiller.

The Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety voted against the objection raised by ENVI Rapporteur Kateřina Konečná, a member of the Nordic Green Left faction, who tried to block extension of glyphosate. The herbicide created by Monsanto is best known by the brand name Roundup.

The motion was rejected with 25 votes in favor, 32 against, 10 abstentions.

Sales of the herbicide, which is contained in 750 products, must stop in December if not given re-authorization. The Commission proposes to extend marketing to June of next year.

Environmental groups often cite a report by the World Health Organization that suggests links to cancer. That 2015 report by the WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer found “sufficient evidence in animals” to indicate glyphosate is “probably carcinogenic to humans.”

The European Crop Protection Association supports the herbicide, saying the report contradicted “the world’s most robust and stringent regulatory systems — namely the European Union and the United States — in which crop protection products have undergone extensive reviews based on multi-year testing” and were not found to pose a cancer risk to humans.

Konečná railed against her colleagues for not backing her measure.

“I am really sad that this objection wasn’t approved. I have to say that this is a huge hypocrisy from the ENVI committee members,” she said.

Earlier, the Commission told the panel that there is a big chance that a report on the issue by the EU’s food safety agency will be delayed, which Konečná called outrageous.

“This is unacceptable hazard with a health of the EU’s citizens,” Konečná said.

A Commission spokesman defended the policy.

“Extending the approval period by six months will give EFSA [the European Food Safety Agency] time to finalize its scientific conclusions on glyphosate,” Enrico Brivio said in a statement.

“On the renewal of the authorization, the Commission, in consultation with Member States, will take appropriate risk management action following the publication of the EFSA opinion,” he added.

First created in 1969 by agribusiness giant Monsanto, glyphosate-based herbicides are now produced by many other companies across the world.

While widespread in use, glyphosate-based products face scrutiny from environmental groups, who argue it may be harmful to humans. Advocates want further testing, citing studies suggesting an increase of cases of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in those exposed to it. Some other studies have suggested a link to human and animal cells being damaged in vitro, which can also lead to cancer.

First created in 1969 by agribusiness giant Monsanto, which held the U.S. patent until 2000, glyphosate-based herbicides are now produced by many other companies across the world. Monsanto’s Roundup brand is still a large part of the market with, $5 billion worth sold in 2014 alongside their “Roundup Ready” genetically modified seeds in the U.S.

The company defends the product, with Philip Miller, Vice President Global Regulatory Affairs, saying the WHO review “does not meet the standards used by respected agencies around the world,” referring to the United States and preliminary EU reports.

He also said it conflicts with a study by the German government, the current rapporteur member state for glyphosate. That report recommends reauthorization of the chemical in Europe.

Greenpeace EU food policy director Franziska Achterberg said it was typical of Monsanto to dismiss studies linking the chemical to cancer and chastised the EU approach.

“Given the uncertainty about the effects of glyphosate, the EU should carry out an in-depth and independent scientific risk assessment,” she said. “Unfortunately, EU safety testing relies heavily on unpublished industry data. This is unacceptable and has to change if Europeans are to have any trust in the EU’s safety standards.”

Monsanto’s genetically modified seeds survive the brands own herbicides, allowing farmers to widely spread the Roundup herbicide on a field without damaging the GM “cash crops” they wish to grow.

Mark

Monsanto is factually a global terrorist organization. It is a far worse threat to the world than ISIS.

Posted on 9/16/15 | 2:00 AM CEST

Milton38

Isn’t that the same company that gave us such healthy products as agent orange?
Oh these agencies won’t lie to you?! Ever heard of the health benefits of smoking? No harm in a few packets a day, nothing conclusive. It only took almost fsixty years for governments to wake-up. Perhaps this time there won’t be time enough to wake up.
Are they not the same people who want to sell every farmer their miraculous gm seeds so that the farmers will have to buy it from them year after year – and of course production costs do go up.

Posted on 9/16/15 | 9:14 AM CEST

Hugh Jampton

That’s a very confusing/misleading headline.

It reads as though the proposal to stop glyphosate was accepted by the “panel” (Committee).

Posted on 9/16/15 | 9:22 AM CEST

Hugh Jampton

That’s better!

Posted on 9/16/15 | 1:20 PM CEST

Fredrik Gustavsson

For once EU is protecting food safety and technological advancement over people’s irrational fear of what they don’t understand. Now if they could ba as rational about Nuclear Power…

Posted on 9/16/15 | 1:25 PM CEST

Fredrik Gustavsson

By the way, that last sentence, not true. Herbicides kills weeds. Pesticides kills buggs (theese are the things we should fear as they are dangerous to animal cells). RoundUp-ready genetical modification protects plants from herbicides, allowing for un-targeted spraying. Not a problem since herbicides target Eukaryot plant-cells, not Prokaryot animal-cells.

The article is confusing, but what I understand from it, is that the EU is giving the product a six month extension? This nonsense, have our politicians not learnt from Asbestos and DDT. Glyphosate products should not be on sale, banned completely. To prevent another ticking-time-bomb of poor health outcomes for thousands of people and damage to the environment.

Posted on 9/16/15 | 3:17 PM CEST

matthew weinstein

Oops — sounds like the headline writer neglected to read the article.

Posted on 9/16/15 | 5:25 PM CEST

Anne

US does extensive testing ? no, it doesn’t – it accepts industry tests on face value.

Posted on 9/16/15 | 7:14 PM CEST

JR

Title seems to state the opposite?

Posted on 9/16/15 | 9:04 PM CEST

Dave

Amazing how people are willing to exhibit their ignorance by the comments they make.

Posted on 9/18/15 | 2:57 PM CEST

Mike

As an employee of Monsanto I can tell some of the commenters here that:
1. I wouldn’t work for Monsanto, and many of my work mates would also, if we had any basis to believe that Monsanto ‘s product are inherently harmful the way the are often portrayed by activist groups focused on selling the virtues of higher priced organic food.
2. Monsanto actually sells organic seed to organic to seed suppliers but I am personally concerned that organic food has killed people due to bacterial contamination from the inappropriately treated manure used.
3. I am aware that many government agencies who have no incentive to support unsafe products have and continue to support glyphosate. There is now an extensive commentary by these groups refuting the WHO group’s claim of probable carcinogenicity. I trust the 4 year German EU study versus the 4 hour WHO review. I also know that there are 4 groups at WHO who have commented on it and 3 said it is not likely a carcinogen and that the 1 WHO group that had the minority view put it into the same group as barber shops, picked veggies and working nights.
4. I also work for a mainly seed company that was started in 2000 not another company also called Monsanto that was primarily a chemical company- so linking me with agent orange is a bit like blaming a child in present day Germany for Hitler – its not relevant and doesn’t help and it misses the point.
5. I know that by developing insect protected plants I have been involved in reducing the amount of insecticide chemicals sprays by billions of gallons over the last 20 years – I think that is good. Having spent 5 years just working on making sure it was safe for farmers to use I know it is safe. I also know that most academic scientists would refuse to waste their time doing all the safe testing as they would say it would completely unnecessary but that didn’t stop Monsanto and others doing the right thing.

Ignorance is bliss they say but in the case of GM crops ignorance is actually harming people. Chemicals that can be replaced with GM crops are not due to ignorance. Crops are failing because scientists can’t get funding to develop the solutions farmers need.

If someone here can show us one example of someone who has been hospitalized by GM food please let us all know the facts, because after 20 years of growing them, 4 billions acres and over a trillion meals eaten there is not a single example that has been reported on. There may those who suffer from paranoia down to just concern about new technology but lets put things into perspective -e.g. “Mark” below compares Monsanto to worse than ISIS -well I guess I would put him into the paranoid category

Posted on 9/18/15 | 4:05 PM CEST

Mike

If someone here can show us one example of someone who has been hospitalized by GM food please let us all know the facts, because after 20 years of growing them, 4 billions acres and over a trillion meals eaten there is not a single example. There may those who suffer from paranoia down to just concern about new technology but lets put things into perspective -e.g. “Mark” below compares Monsanto to worse than ISIS -well I guess I would put him into the paranoid category

Posted on 9/18/15 | 4:07 PM CEST

Tony davis

Monsanto and especially others are not ignoring the facts on glyphosate. The facts say it is not a carcinogen. Even 3 parts of WHO say it is safe but the 1 part of EHO spent 4 hrs and made their conclusion – not smart! And not protecting anyone since the other herbicides are not as safe